Finding Out the Truth About Your Credit

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Can you trust online credit reports if you are thinking of buying a home? Unfortunately, the answer is no, and there are a few reasons why.

You have probably seen advertisements for free credit scores online. However, those sites can be fairly misleading.

Why? Those websites are selling their own version of a credit report, which is not the same as the FICO credit score that your lenders look at.

In fact, major credit bureaus have come under scrutiny and were recently fined for making misleading ads that told consumers they were buying a FICO lending score.

The only site out there that gives you a true FICO score is MyFico.com. I use this site personally to track my own credit. However, that website is selling you the latest, most detailed version of the FICO credit report—which is not the version lenders are required to use.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac require lenders to use version four of the report, even though version nine is the latest and most advanced. As a result, there could be a big difference between what you see on consumer sites and the credit score your lender actually pulls.

Make sure you talk with a lender early on in the process.

That’s why it’s so important to chat with a lender early on in the process to make sure that there are no red flags or anything that would prevent you from purchasing a home.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I would be happy to help you!